| Soest | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — Municipality — | |||
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| Coordinates: | |||
| Country | Netherlands | ||
| Province | Utrecht | ||
| Area(2006) | |||
| • Total | 46.45 km2 (17.9 sq mi) | ||
| • Land | 46.26 km2 (17.9 sq mi) | ||
| • Water | 0.19 km2 (0.1 sq mi) | ||
| Population (1 January 2007) | |||
| • Total | 45,346 | ||
| • Density | 980/km2 (2,538.2/sq mi) | ||
| Source: CBS, Statline. | |||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
Soest () is a municipality and a town in the central Netherlands, in the province of Utrecht. It is located about 6 km west of Amersfoort.
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The oldest documents mentioning Soest (then written as Zoys) date from 1029. Its oldest church (the Oude Kerk, meaning Old Church), which is still in use today, dates from the fifteenth century. Traces of earlier habitation are found though. The area of "Hees", now at the outskirts of Soest may date in to the Early Middle Ages, and prehistoric burial mounds in the Soesterduinen point to early habitation in this area.
Medieval agricultural activity is still visible as there is much farmland within Soest. The biggest area is in the center of the town, on a hill, and are called 'de Engh'. A small street is het Kerkpad (literally, the Church Path). The Soesterduinen, in the South, sand dunes, are worth visiting.
Upon visiting Soest, numerous churches depict the Calvinist/Catholic tradition of the region. Christengemeente Soest, Wilhelmina Kerk Soest, Gereformeerde Kerk Vrijgemaakt, Emmakerk and the Evangelische Kerk Soest are the main churches within the town of Soest.
Currently some 50,000 inhabitants live in Soest, consisting mainly of commuters.
Soest has three railway stations:
Soest can be reached by train from Utrecht (every half hour, xx:05 and xx:35) and Baarn (xx:23 and xx:53); all trains stop at the three stations. The station of Soestduinen situated on the railroad between Utrecht and Amersfoort was closed in 1998, after being in use for 135 years.
The stations that can be reached directly from Soest are:
Soest has a number of bus stops and three bus lines, all of which leave from the bus station at Soest Zuid exactly at the half hour. Line 21 and 22 are local buses that do not leave Soest. Line 70 and 74, however, travel both directions to Amersfoort and Hilversum, and also includes Leusden.
Soest, Netherlands is twinned with:
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